Flames shoot down Predators

Home side overcomes Nystrom’s four-goal night

Flames goalie Reto Berra blocks an overtime shot by Nashville Predators. Berra came up huge in the shootout to preserve a 5-4 comeback victory at the Dome.

Photograph by: Leah Hennel
, Calgary Herald

For nearly three periods, Friday’s game at the Scotiabank Saddledome looked like the Eric Nystrom homecoming show.

The former Calgary Flame — drafted 10th overall in 2002 who wound up with the Nashville Predators in the off-season — had put together a four (!) goal performance which was the first time in Nashville’s franchise history they’d had a player score four goals in one game.

The visitors led Nystrom’s former team 4-2 with just under 10 minutes to go in the match and it looked like the Flames, who just snapped a franchise-record seven game losing skid on Wednesday against Phoenix, were going to roll over.

They didn’t. Riding the momentum of a five-on-three man advantage, Mikael Backlund tipped Kris Russell’s point shot to ignite the comeback. Then, just over a minute later, David Jones tipped T.J. Brodie’s shot and knotted the action 4-4 as the home side dominated the latter half of the third period.

Then, in the shootout, goals from Jiri Hudler and Sean Monahan sealed the deal allowed the Flames to go home with a 5-4 victory.

“Obviously, it was a big comeback,” Monahan said. “It was a hard-fought game by us and something for us to be proud about.

“We’re a hard working team and we never quit. This game really gave us some confidence to move forward with.”

The comeback started in the third period with Calder Candidate Seth Jones, making a big rookie mistake, as he coughed up the puck to Matt Stajan. That oops gift-wrapped David Jones’ first goal of the night to put the Flames within one on a power play. It had been 3-2 for the Predators at that point (with only 1:24 elapsed in the third).

But, in the end, their three power-play markers made a big difference.

“There were a few goals that were a little unlucky,” said David Jones. “It was nice to come back and get the win, for sure … I think we were skating better. I think they out-skated us in the first two periods and we did a good job of getting on their D in the third and carrying the game there.”

Nashville hit the board first thing in the first period when Nystrom took advantage of a defensive lapse by Dennis Wideman and Shane O’Brien only 1:51 into the action. But they responded quickly.

After digging behind former Edmonton Oiler goalie Devan Dubnyk’s net on a power play, Backlund and Lance Bouma managed to fish the puck out to the point. Russell slipped the puck over to Giordano and, boom, 1-1 with only 3:23 elapsed in the first period.

Early in the second period, however, things really went sideways.

Nystrom, a one-man wrecking ball, scored after tossing a shot on Karri Ramo’s blocker and capitalizing on a bad bounce (again, Wideman and O’Brien were the last line of defenders before Ramo). Nystrom, providing the screen, eventually was credited for the Predators’ third — a tip in and another product of him crashing the net.

“A lot of good memories here,” Nystrom said. “This is where my career started, I have the utmost respect for this organization and coming in here and playing in front of these fans, they’re really great fans.

“It’s just frustrating that we let that one slip away.”

At that point, Wideman, O’Brien (who was playing his first game after being a healthy scratch for the past two), and the line of Galiardi, Sean Monahan, and Joe Colborne were a minus-three.

“I would like not to (talk about the first two periods),” head coach Bob Hartley said. “But we knew it would be a grind. That’s the way Nashville is. They have four lines with speed, size.

“And, you look at their blueline. Weber, Ellis, the kid Seth Jones ... we warned our guys it would be tough. 1-1 after the first and they got two lucky goals which put us back on our heels for a while. But our guys deserve a lot of credit. I’m really proud of our guys.”

After allowing two goals on four shots in the second period, Ramo’s night — his fourth straight start — was over. In relief, Reto Berra, the Swiss Olympian, turned aside 13 shots and denied Matt Cullen, David Legwand, and Ryan Ellis in the shootout. (The only one to beat him was Swiss pal Roman Josi). The Flames won their second straight and improved to 18-27-7 while Nashville slipped to 23-22-8.

Dubnyk was peppered by the Flames in the third period with 15 attempts and 31 in the end.

As for Nystrom’s four-goal night?

“I don’t really care about that,” he said. “We’re in a huge race right now. We need the two points. I couldn’t care less on scoring goals. It’s about winning. It’s frustrating that we let that one slide away.”

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